Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a
type of local government district in England. As created, they are
sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties (colloquially shire
counties) in a two-tier arrangement. In the 1990s, several
non-metropolitan counties were created that are unitary authorities
and also have non-metropolitan district status. A third category is
the districts of Berkshire, which are non-metropolitan districts that
are unitary authorities, but without non-metropolitan county status.

Non-metropolitan districts[edit]
Non-metropolitan districts are subdivisions of English
non-metropolitan counties which have a two-tier structure of local
government.[1] Most non-metropolitan counties have a county council,
and also have several districts, each with a borough or district
council. In these cases local government functions are divided between
county and district councils, to the level where they can be practised
most efficiently:

Borough/district councils are responsible for local planning and
building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health,
markets and fairs, refuse collection and recycling, cemeteries and
crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism.
CountyCounty councils are responsible for running the largest and most
expensive local services such as education, social services,
libraries, main roads, public transport, policing and fire services,
trading standards, waste disposal and strategic planning.

Service
Non-metropolitan county
Non-metropolitan district
Unitary authority

Education
Y

Y

Housing

Y
Y

Planning applications

Y
Y

Strategic planning
Y

Y

Transport planning
Y

Y

Passenger transport
Y

Y

Highways
Y

Y

Fire
Y

Y

Social services
Y

Y

Libraries
Y

Y

Leisure and recreation

Y
Y

Waste collection

Y
Y

Waste disposal
Y

Y

Environmental health

Y
Y

Revenue collection

Y
Y

Status[edit]
Many districts have borough status, which means the local council is
called a
Borough Council instead of
DistrictDistrict Council and gives them
the right to appoint a Mayor.
Borough status is granted by royal
charter and, in many cases, continues a style enjoyed by a predecessor
authority, which can date back centuries. Some districts such as
OxfordOxford or
ExeterExeter have city status, granted by letters patent, but this
does not give the local council any extra powers other than the right
to call itself a
CityCity Council. Not all city or borough councils are
non-metropolitan districts, many being
Unitary AuthoritiesUnitary Authorities –
districts which are ceremonially part of a non-metropolitan county,
but not run by the county council – or metropolitan districts –
which were subdivisions of the Metropolitan Counties created in 1974,
but whose county councils were abolished in the 1980s and are
effectively unitary authorities and have the same powers.
History[edit]
By 1899,
EnglandEngland had been divided at district level into rural
districts, urban districts, municipal boroughs, county boroughs and
metropolitan boroughs. This system was abolished by the London
Government Act 1963 and the Local Government Act 1972.
Non-metropolitan districts were created by this act in 1974 when
EnglandEngland outside
Greater LondonGreater London was divided into metropolitan counties
and non-metropolitan counties.
Metropolitan countiesMetropolitan counties were sub-divided
into metropolitan districts and the non-metropolitan counties were
sub-divided into non-metropolitan districts. The metropolitan
districts had more powers than their non-metropolitan counterparts.
Initially, there were 296 non-metropolitan districts in the two-tier
structure, but reforms in the 1990s and 2009 reduced their number to
201. A further 55 non-metropolitan districts are now unitary
authorities, which combine the functions of county and
borough/district councils.
ScotlandScotland and Wales[edit]
In Wales, an almost identical two-tier system of local government
existed between 1974 and 1996 (see Districts of Wales). In 1996, this
was abolished and replaced with an entirely unitary system of local
government, with one level of local government responsible for all
local services. Since the areas for
WalesWales and
EnglandEngland had been enacted
separately and there were no Welsh metropolitan areas, the term
'non-metropolitan district' does not apply to Wales. A similar system
existed in Scotland, which in 1975 was divided into regions and
districts, this was also abolished in 1996 and replaced with a fully
unitary system.
DistrictDistrict Councils' Network[edit]
In
EnglandEngland 200 out of the 201 non-metropolitan district councils are
represented by the
DistrictDistrict Councils' Network,[2] special interest
group which sits within the Local Government Association.[3] The
network’s purpose is to “act as an informed and representative
advocate for districts to government and other national bodies, based
on their unique position to deliver for ‘local’ people.”
List of counties and districts[edit]
This is a list of non-metropolitan counties and their districts. Some
non-metropolitan districts are coterminous with non-metropolitan
counties, making them unitary authorities (for example Herefordshire,
the Isle of Wight, and Rutland). These are excluded from this list as
is
BerkshireBerkshire which has no county council.
For a full list of districts of all types including unitary
authorities, metropolitan districts and London boroughs, see Districts
of England.

List of abolished non-metropolitan districts[edit]
This is a list of former two-tier districts in
EnglandEngland which have been
abolished, by local government reorganizations such as the 2009
structural changes to local government in England. It does not include
districts that still exist after becoming a unitary authority or those
that transferred from one county to another, including those that
changed name.